Box Lacrosse in British Columbia: Battle of the Bigs

Editor’s Note: The BCJALL, or British Columbia Jr. A Lacrosse League, and LaxAllStars have teamed up to bring you the hottest content from one of the most competitive box lacrosse leagues in the world. Jr. A box lacrosse in BC is a big deal, with many rising stars playing in the league.

For the rest of the season I will be following the league closely and working with a team of insiders to provide you the BCJALL Game of the Week and Weekly Preview.

In Canada, the summer is box season, so let’s talk Jr. A Box Lacrosse in British Columbia!

Photo Credit: Paul Sparrow

Game of the Week

New Westminster @ CoquitlamWednesday, June 18th

The battle of the best. As both teams now have their complete rosters and all players back from school, you can be sure this game will be a little different than when the two league leaders first met.

Each team is coming off of decisive victories is the past week but this game will really show what these two teams are capable of. With the way these two powerhouses have been playing as of late, you can only assume this will be a sneak peak of the BCJALL final, the winner of which will compete for the legendary Minto Cup.

Coquitlam will looking for every possible advantage and hopefully the home floor will be one of many. Both teams have goalies contending for the best stats in the province but as of late the Adanacs net-minders have been coming up huge. Riley Camazolla and Christian DelBianco each have save percentages upwards of 80% and a GAA floating around 7 to match. A big game from whoever gets the call will be vital in stopping New Westminster’s highly efficient offense which has been led Connor Robinson throughout the season. In addition to Robinson’s league leading 74 points, Josh Byrne has been nothing short of spectacular, averaging 8.2 points per game in the 5 games he has been in the lineup for.

Coquitlam has had their fair share of offensive contributors as well with Wesley Berg, Brett Kujula and Tyler Pace each registering 7 points in their most recent win against the Timbermen. The Adanacs have also had a tremendous amount of offensive help from their transition workhorses, especially assistant captain Jordan Gilles who has 31 points in 15 games this season, from the backend.

Consistency will be the key to success when these two teams face off. With Coquitlam’s physical and aggressive style of play, expect them to pressure New Westminster a little more than they are used to. While the ‘Bellies solid play in all positions has been the reason for the clubs success this season. The two clubs will be put to the test this Wednesday.

Week 9 Preview

New West @ Coquitlam – With first place up for grabs this game should definitely live up to the talk and hype it is getting around the BCJALL this week. The ‘Bellies are riding the wave of their league leading 8 game win streak and look to improve their record on the road at the Palace on Poirier against the Adanacs. Coquitlam looks to remain in first and even up the season series between the teams and will likely turn to Wesley Berg, who has had 13 points in his first two games back to lead the A’s offensive punch like he has done so successfully in past years.

New West @ Burnaby – New West will visit Bill Copeland Arena for the first time this season and look to improve on their near perfect record as the Lakers will be looking for a bounce back game after dropping two straight against Victoria this past weekend.

Langley @ POCO – Langley will be looking to their offense to produce a ton of points in their last season meeting against the Saints. Both teams look to be out of playoff contention but moves can still be made by the Thunder if they are able to upset some teams as the schedule is winding down. POCO will be fighting to avoid getting swept in their season series against Langley and looking to ramp up their level of play before they take on Victoria at home to cap off their week.

Nanaimo @ Delta – As the regular season is rapidly coming to an end, every 2 points is critical, especially for the T-men. After a rough week Nanaimo will be looking for the much needed win and some momentum for their next game against the ‘Bellies. On the other side of the floor, the Islanders will look to use this matchup to get themselves back in the win column after winning only one game in their last five.

Langley @ Victoria – With a win against the Thunder, Victoria can ensure their hold on the third place position and hold Delta in fourth. After their back-to-back wins against the Lakers, the Shamrocks improved to 9-5 and will be doing everything they can to avoid playing the league champions in the first playoff round. With this being said, don’t expect Langley to go down without a fight as they will be striving to separate themselves from the two bottom teams, Burnaby and POCO.

Victoria @ POCO – With a one point lead on Delta at the beginning of the week and two games at hand. Victoria is in good shape and has been successful pulling away from their Island rivals the Timbermen. With playoffs looking to be out of sight for the Saints, they can look to end the season on a few high notes with some upsets and perhaps surprise some teams thinking their games against them will be an easy two points.

Nanaimo @ New West – Nanaimo will be put to the test and be looking to answer the bell after dropping their last 3 games prior to the start of this week. One should expect a better outcome then the 22-2 result the last time these two teams met as the T-men will look to avenge the loss while New West will be putting the cap on a busy week after playing Coquitlam and Burnaby.

Coquitlam @ Burnaby – Like POCO, the Lakers are looking to win a few games people are not expecting them to and one against the Adanacs would be huge for the team and shake up the standings. With Burnaby losing several bodies to injury in the past week and after what will sure to be a tough game against the ‘Bellies early in the week, the Lakers will be looking to show some grit and grind one out against Coquitlam. Coquitlam will look to use this game as an opportunity to do some fine tuning and have all cylinders firing at their best for their remaining games leading up to playoffs.

About the author

Mark Donahue

Transplanted in Boise from Ohio, Mark is the editor, video guy, and box lacrosse junkie at LaxAllStars.com. When he’s not obsessing over lax at LAS HQ or officiating a game somewhere, you can probably find him on the slopes or at the disc golf course.